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Dinner

Vegetable and Tofu Dumplings

A meatless filling of napa cabbage, mushrooms, carrots, tofu and rice noodles, seasoned with ginger and sesame. Most families make a vegetable batch alongside the pork one.

⏱ 1 hr 30 min (75 min prep, 15 min cooking) 🍽 Serves 6 · about 8 dumplings freezer friendlymake aheadleftovers vegetarianvegandairy free

In our collection Lunar New Year: menu and shopping list β†’

πŸ“… Add to my plan

ContainsWheat, Soybeans, Sesame. Check the labels on what you buy; brands differ.

Ingredients

Make 6 servings
  • 1 lb Napa cabbage, about half a head, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp Table salt, to draw water from the cabbage
  • 1 tbsp Canola oil
  • 8 oz White mushrooms, finely chopped
  • 2 Carrots, finely grated
  • 14 oz Firm tofu, firm, pressed and crumbled
  • 2 oz Rice noodles, thin, soaked and chopped (optional but traditional)
  • 4 Green onions, chopped
  • 1 tbsp Fresh ginger, grated
  • 3 tbsp Low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp Toasted sesame oil
  • ΒΌ tsp Ground black pepper
  • 48 Dumpling wrappers (round), round

Nutrition

Nutrition coming: the USDA numbers for these ingredients are being added.

Steps

You’ll need: large skillet, large bowl, clean kitchen towel, floured baking sheets, large pot or nonstick skillet with a lid, slotted spoon.

  1. Salt the cabbage, wait 15 minutes, and squeeze it very dry in a towel.
  2. Heat the oil and cook the mushrooms and carrots until their liquid cooks off, 6 to 8 minutes. Cool.
  3. Mix the cabbage, mushrooms, carrots, tofu, noodles, green onions, ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil and pepper.
  4. Fold, then boil or pan-fry exactly as for the pork dumplings. These are done when the wrappers are tender and the filling is steaming hot, 5 to 6 minutes of boiling.
Make aheadMake the filling a day ahead. Fold and freeze dumplings up to 3 months.
❄️ FreezerFreeze uncooked dumplings on a tray, then bag them, up to 3 months; cook from frozen, adding 2 to 3 minutes.
β†Ί LeftoversRefrigerate within 2 hours; eat within 3 to 4 days. Pan-fry to reheat.
πŸ§’ With kidsKids can stir the filling and fold dumplings.
Egg swapScramble 2 eggs, chop and mix in for a richer filling (adds eggs).
Gluten-free swapUse rice-paper or gluten-free wrappers and tamari.

Goes well with

πŸ₯’ Dumpling Dipping SauceπŸ₯Ÿ Pork and Napa Cabbage Dumplings (Jiaozi)

Good to know

Table salt vs. kosher salt vs. sea salt Cooking Fats Compared

An original Teddy Rook Book recipe, written for our Lunar New Year collection; safety steps follow USDA. Nutrition is estimated from USDA FoodData Central and changes with brands and portions.